Find out why Duterte sees himself as a butterfly

President-elect Rodrigo Duterte – known as a foul-mouthed, trash-talking and aggressive politician – said that he sees himself as becoming a butterfly in the near future.

“I’m telling you how I would behave. There’s going to be a metamorphosis… It blossoms into a butterfly,” Duterte promised.

“I’m telling you how I would behave. It blossoms into a butterfly,” Duterte promised.

The president-elect was talking about improving his controversial public behavior after he becomes inaugurated as the new President of the Philippines on June 30. Duterte is infamous for cursing his rivals, making rude jokes about women and threatening criminals with death.

“When I become president, when I take my oath of office… ibang storya na yun (that is a different story)… There will be a metamorphosis,” Duterte added.

Duterte also has an explanation for his rude behavior that seems to have worsened in the past few weeks after winning the presidential election by a wide margin.

The president-elect recently criticized the Catholic Church as the “most hypocritical institution,” revealing that some bishops live luxurious lives, have children, and constantly ask for favors and gifts from politicians and rich citizens.

Duterte also made headlines when he catcalled a female reporter asking him a question during a press conference. The reporter called Duterte’s action as inappropriate and her husband described the incident as “wrong on so many levels.”

Duterte’s critics also called out the president-elect’s lack of gender diversity in his Cabinet. They also criticized the apparent snub of Vice President-elect Leni Robredo in Duterte’s Cabinet due to his friendly ties with defeated vice presidential candidate Bongbong Marcos.

However, Duterte’s most controversial remark in recent days was his comment that most of the media members who were assassinated were corrupt journalists. This remark has caused an outrage from both the local and international community.